Joshua Kimmich praised Bayern Munich's “convincing” response to their loss to Mainz after beating RB Leipzig 5-1 on Friday to move seven points clear at the top.
Jamal Musiala's goal inside a minute was quickly canceled out by Benjamin Sesko, with two sides scoring within the first two minutes of a Bundesliga match for the first time.
Konrad Laimer restored Bayern's lead before Kimmich added his side's third at the Allianz Arena nine minutes before half-time.
After the break, Leroy Sane and Alphonso Davies added further sparkle to the impressive performance, with Vincent Kompany's side taking their league goal tally to 47 goals.
The result came after Bayern suffered their first Bundesliga defeat of the season against Mainz last week, with Jae-Sung Lee's brace doing the damage.
“It was certainly a very good performance. We started brilliantly but then conceded the equalizer. But you could see from the start that we really wanted to win,” Kimmich said.
“And we did that convincingly. The coach really sets a good example and we players also thought Mainz was our worst performance of the season.
“It was extremely important to show a response.”
Friday's victory marked Bayern's final game of 2024, coming off in style against a Leipzig side who had won four of their last five games in all competitions leading up to the match.
Kompany's side collected an expected goals (xG) total of 3.25 from their 22 shots, while also limiting their opponents to just one shot on target throughout the match.
Harry Kane was unable to add to the 14 goals he scored in 15 Bundesliga games this season, despite having more shots (four) than any of his teammates against Leipzig.
The division's top scorer echoed Kimmich's thoughts but insisted Bayern would return after the festive break to continue their impressive form.
“We had a good performance. We were very dominant, moved the ball well and were good in our counter-pressing. It's a good way to end the year,” said Kane.
“It's always important for a feeling, you always want to go into the break with a victory. We are at the top of the rankings and that makes us feel good about the new year.
“We can enjoy the break for a while, but then it's about looking ahead.”
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